The Truth of God’s Authority

No Other Name

Acts 4:1–12 (NIV)

The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. They seized Peter and John and, because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand.

The next day the rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and others of the high priest’s family. They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: “By what power or what name did you do this?”

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. Jesus is

“ ‘the stone you builders rejected,

which has become the cornerstone.’

Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

After proclaiming the truth of how the lame man had been healed in the name of Jesus, Peter and John are confronted by the religious leaders of the day. The religious leaders were offended by the miracle and the teaching of Peter and John for what they did and said did not align with their teachings nor their views of how God would work and reveal Himself. The sadducees were a Jewish sect who denied the resurrection of the dead so as Peter and John proclaimed that Christ had risen, the sadducees could not believe what was said much less what was done in the name of the resurrected.

The sadducees have Peter and John arrested and placed in prison overnight for disrupting the peace in the temple hoping that this would sober them up and prepare them to heed a warning. In the morning, they are brought before the elders (Sadducee leaders), scribes (Pharisaic lawyers), and the chief priests (Members of the Sanhedrin). When asked under whose authority they had healed, Peter responds in the name of Jesus. Furthermore, Peter draws correlation with Psalm 118:22 referring to the chief priests as the builders and Christ as the rejected stone.

Psalm 118 (NIV)

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

his love endures forever.

Let Israel say:

“His love endures forever.”

Let the house of Aaron say:

“His love endures forever.”

Let those who fear the Lord say:

“His love endures forever.”

When hard pressed, I cried to the Lord;

he brought me into a spacious place.

The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid.

What can mere mortals do to me?

The Lord is with me; he is my helper.

I look in triumph on my enemies.

It is better to take refuge in the Lord

than to trust in humans.

It is better to take refuge in the Lord

than to trust in princes.

All the nations surrounded me,

but in the name of the Lord I cut them down.

They surrounded me on every side,

but in the name of the Lord I cut them down.

They swarmed around me like bees,

but they were consumed as quickly as burning thorns;

in the name of the Lord I cut them down.

I was pushed back and about to fall,

but the Lord helped me.

The Lord is my strength and my defense;

he has become my salvation.

Shouts of joy and victory

resound in the tents of the righteous:

“The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!

The Lord’s right hand is lifted high;

the Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!”

I will not die but live,

and will proclaim what the Lord has done.

The Lord has chastened me severely,

but he has not given me over to death.

Open for me the gates of the righteous;

I will enter and give thanks to the Lord.

This is the gate of the Lord

through which the righteous may enter.

I will give you thanks, for you answered me;

you have become my salvation.

The stone the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone;

the Lord has done this,

and it is marvelous in our eyes.

The Lord has done it this very day;

let us rejoice today and be glad.

Lord, save us!

Lord, grant us success!

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

From the house of the Lord we bless you.

The Lord is God,

and he has made his light shine on us.

With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession

up to the horns of the altar.

You are my God, and I will praise you;

you are my God, and I will exalt you.

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;

his love endures forever.

Blinded

Acts 4:13–17 (NIV)

When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say. So they ordered them to withdraw from the Sanhedrin and then conferred together. “What are we going to do with these men?” they asked. “Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign, and we cannot deny it. But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name.”

We view the world around us through the lens of culture. We see the political turmoil, the cultural degradation, and the social injustices through the lens of culture and we allow our thoughts and feelings to be shaped by the cultural trends of the day. Worse yet, we also view God and the things of faith through the lens of culture and our thoughts and feelings concerning God become shaped and morphed by the cultural leaning of the moment.

When this happens, we can and will justify to ourselves any truth and even make ourselves believe that God backs our position. But stop, ask yourself the question: Did God really say this? Does God really respond this way? What does this say about who God is and how God operates?

What is Right

Acts 4:18–22 (NIV)

Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John replied, “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

After further threats they let them go. They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened. For the man who was miraculously healed was over forty years old.

God is the lens by which all things are to be viewed. Apart from God, we will always lead ourselves astray and diminish life and salvation. Jesus came to give us a relationship with God. Will we spend our live drawing near to the Lord or continually choosing to live apart from Him?